Crown Prince of Norway to visit St. Olaf
His Royal Highness Crown Prince Haakon Magnus of Norway will visit St. Olaf College on Wednesday, October 8, during a weeklong trip to the United States to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Norwegian migration.
The St. Olaf community is invited to gather on the sidewalks between Buntrock Commons and Rolvaag Memorial Library at 8:45 a.m. to welcome the Crown Prince to campus. He will start his visit by meeting with students to hear about their coursework at St. Olaf and engage in conversation. A convocation with Crown Prince Haakon will be held in Boe Memorial Chapel later in the morning, featuring music by the St. Olaf Choir and St. Olaf Orchestra. Following a welcome by St. Olaf President Susan Rudell Singer, the Crown Prince will hold a discussion with students led by Parker Chelikowsky ’27, Odin Milbury ’27, Maren Miller ’27, and Madi Tally ’26. Please note that in order to ensure adequate seating, campus community members will need to pick up a complimentary ticket to attend the convocation in Boe Memorial Chapel.
Community members are also invited to gather in Buntrock Commons by 10:50 a.m. to say farewell to the Crown Prince as he departs campus.
St. Olaf College was founded in 1874 by Norwegian immigrants and has hosted members of the Norwegian royal family on several occasions — including a previous visit by Crown Prince Haakon in 2005. Most recently, Her Majesty Queen Sonja of Norway visited St. Olaf in the fall of 2022. She had previously traveled to the college with King Harald V in 2011 and 1995, and first visited in 1978 as Crown Princess of Norway. Other Norwegian royal visits include Princess Astrid in 2008; Princess Märtha Louise in 2006; and King Olav V in 1987.
About His Royal Highness Crown Prince Haakon
Crown Prince Haakon is heir to the throne of Norway. He carries out a wide variety of official engagements in Norway every year, focusing especially on entrepreneurship and innovation in Norwegian business, youth and diversity, and nature — with a special regard for the ocean and the issue of climate change.
In 2013 he initiated the SIKT conference, which has become an annual meeting place where young leaders from all sectors of Norwegian society discuss the future of the country. Every year the Crown Prince also travels abroad with Norwegian delegations, strengthening bilateral relations within trade and industry, science, and culture.
A graduate of the Royal Norwegian Naval Academy in Bergen, Crown Prince Haakon holds the rank of general in the Norwegian Armed Forces, admiral in the Norwegian Navy, and general in the Norwegian Air Force. The Crown Prince is very active in international issues, and young leadership and the fight against poverty are issues particularly close to his heart. In 2003 he was appointed as Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and in 2006 he was one of three founders of Global Dignity, a worldwide initiative to promote values-based leadership.
Crown Prince Haakon holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California at Berkeley and a master’s degree in development studies from the London School of Economics and Political Science.